


I gotta go now

by Elasmosaurus



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Azure Moon Route, Disney Princess Sylvain™️, Gen, Hapi Week 2021, Hapi has a choice to make, Hapimitri times, Hapistance was here too, Hapivain Agenda™, Plans For The Future, Post-War, Three Hapi ships in the background, We all need a friend like Yuri, but she runs away from it are we surprised
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-17 01:34:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28840965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elasmosaurus/pseuds/Elasmosaurus
Summary: After the war, Hapi reflects on what comes next with some of the people that have come to mean a lot to her.“What will you do now?” He asked softly, looking at the horizon rather than her. Good.“There’s somewhere I have to go at some point. After that, I dunno. Coco and I talked about trying food from all over Fódlan. Wandering around might be nice, after being caged for so long. I might do that first.”Written for Hapi Week Day 7: Wandering | Freedom | Fairytales
Relationships: Hapi & Sylvain Jose Gautier, Hapi & Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	I gotta go now

**Author's Note:**

> Please love my rarepairs.
> 
> Title from "I Know the End" by Phoebe Bridgers.
>
>> I'm gonna chase it, I know, I know, I know  
> I gotta go now, I know, I know, I know 
> 
> Listen [fearlesswindy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fearlesswindy) introduced me to the Disney Princess Sylvain agenda and I jumped straight on board. Love that for him.
> 
> Thanks to the team who ran Hapi Week and to [Wyverntail](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wyverntail) and [Sayl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sayl) for making me love Hapi and being fantastic betas.
> 
> CWs: Canon Compliant Character death (Sorry Eddy and The Bert)

Hapi sits on the steps of the Imperial Palace, staring out over the city painted red with the dying light of the sun. She stifles a yawn, reaching her hands over head as she spins from side to side in a stretch to wake herself up.

“That looked better in your Academy uniform,” a smarmy voice calls from over her shoulder. The metallic jingling of coins accompanies thudding footsteps as someone in armoured boots approaches her.

“Letch,” she shoots over her shoulder as the man in question sits down beside her, his long legs sprawling everywhere.

“Sylvain Jose Gautier, at your service.” He completes the mocking bow with a wink and flash of pearly teeth. Hapi’s sure it makes most of the women blush.

She snorts instead. “The only person you service is yourself.”

He looks offended and rushes to defend his reputation as readily as he had once defended Coco’s honour from some haughty nobles commenting on the disgraced former House Nuvelle. Not that it had helped, coming from him. But she’d appreciated him looking out for her friend. “Hey! I’ll have you know, they all say I’m a generous—” Hapi fixes him with a death stare, allowing the spell to glow purple at her fingertips, and he stops.

“Shutting up. Got it.” They sit in pseudo silence; the sounds of his breathing, victory celebrations behind them, and the clear up effort in the city below preventing the true absence of noise. The sun dips lower on the horizon, and Sylvain speaks. “Isn’t it almost your bedtime?”

She shakes her head, the calm of her reverie disturbed, and glares at him. “No, I’ve got first watch.” Noticing the late hour, she adds, “I’ve got to go, I’m already late. Why didn’t you tell me?” She shoves him playfully and he counters with a wistful smile, his chocolate eyes honest.

Huh. She’d never seen him look genuine before.

She doesn’t like it. Behind his mask lurks something she can’t deal with right now. She has enough of her own stuff to sort.

“I got you out of it.” Sylvain shrugged. “You get cranky when you’re tired.”

“Oh, because I’m so dangerous I need special treatment!?” She snaps at him.

He physically recoils from her outburst, hands up in submissive protest. It makes her heart thump harder, her nose scrunches and she balls her fists, but he recovers quickly.

“Nothing like that. I just thought you looked tired, and it’s a long march tomorrow.” To his credit, he doesn’t use a horse voice on her. And she can feel the bags under her eyes, puffy from lack of sleep and losing her friends. Even the ones she chose to side against.

It hadn’t been much of a choice.

She just picked the side where there were fewer of them to lose.

And she was grateful to Sylvain, Byleth and the others who ensured she never had to kill any of them personally.

“What will you do now?” He asked softly, looking at the horizon rather than her. Good.

“There’s somewhere I have to go at some point. After that, I dunno. Coco and I talked about trying food from all over Fódlan. Wandering around might be nice, after being caged for so long. I might do that first.”

His eyes narrow with a question, or maybe an observation, but Sylvain just laughs. She wishes he’d come out with it instead of all this posturing. “You can skip all of Faerghus, the food is _awful._ Unless you had another reason for coming to freeze with us?” He asks playfully.

Something hides behind his wolfish grin - the question isn’t the throwaway comment he disguises it as. He’s acting weird. She won’t tear away his mask, though. She knows how important they can be. Plus, she has no time to play his games.

“Stop with the weird looks and questions. Just say what you mean.”

“Hm.” A wry curl emphasises his plush lips. Her eyes follow the pink flash of his tongue as it darts out to wet them.

Realising herself, she turns away sharply, watching the soldiers below push debris in the roads to the side instead. _Plush!?_ They did look as soft as Coco’s though.

“Should I be practicing that bow for real, preparing for when I have to call you _your majesty?”_

Hapi looks back over her shoulder to where the only person she thinks could truly understand her is being lauded for his successes in the war they ended that afternoon. No one else understood the strain of constantly having to hold back, or the guilt from the inevitable times you slipped up. Hapi had wondered if their broken pieces fitted together somehow, filling each other’s cracks. She’d also wondered about that tight feeling she got in her chest whenever he was around. It’s the same as the one she sometimes gets when—

“None of your business,” she says to shut down _that_ line of thought, focusing on the cold stone steps cutting into her legs to drown out the other feelings bubbling beneath her skin. In the streets, soldiers in Imperial and Kingdom uniforms work together to remove the rubble blocking in a family.

She bites back a sigh. Why couldn’t Didi and Eddy find a way to work together?

Risking a glance at him, she sees Sylvain nod. He exhales deeply, looking up at the sky. “Whatever you say, _your majesty,”_ he mocks lightheartedly.

She hates it, but can’t name the reason why it sounds so awful on his lips. Rather than figure it out, she throws his question back at him. “What will you do now, _Casanova?”_

A false laugh that tries too hard to cover the bitterness beneath falls from his lips. _It’s a shame he only tries when it comes to pretending,_ Hapi thinks, watching the effortless mask on his face hide the slip up of his voice.

“Ah. No freedom for me. I’m off back to the Gautier Watch Tower on the border, to be married off to the best Crested offer and holed up until I’ve made Crest babies. Don’t cry for me though,” he jests, anger creeping back into his voice, “I’ll be allowed out to go murder people whose only crime is finding themselves on the wrong side of the border. So, I’ll be just peachy, you don’t need to worry about me.” She doesn’t miss how his head hangs down, eyes trained on his knees. And she knows full well what it means for him to be honest like this.

But Hapi can’t help herself. She covers her mouth to prevent the sounds, but her body shakes with the silent laughter that escapes her nose in undignified snorts. “I’m sorry,” she manages after a minute, finally able to calm herself somewhat, before bursting into another fit of giggles.

Sylvain waits patiently for her to compose herself, brows furrowed in confusion. “What’s so funny?”

Hapi wipes away the wetness at the corner of her eyes. “You’re. Hahaha. You’re like the princess in Freckles’ story.”

“Princess!?” He repeats incredulously.

“Yeah, the one who’s trapped in a tower in that fairy tale. You never know,” she leans over to elbow him in the side, “If you’re lucky, maybe a handsome prince will come rescue you.” She wiggles her eyebrows at him, mimicking the gesture he’s made towards her many times before.

At that, he joins her in laughing. “Maybe. Life’s rarely as neat as fairy tales, though. Sleep well, Hapi. And—” he pauses, his voice heavy with emotion when he continues. “Have a good trip.” Sylvain squeezes her shoulder before returning to the party behind them.

Sometimes, the Gautier philanderer was capable of moments of intense wisdom. Hapi resists the urge to sigh as she ponders his words, her heart tugging in various directions.

She wasn’t going to choose again. It had been too painful the first time.

“Shut up, Yuri-bird,” she calls out to the not so empty space around her. It was no use being annoyed at him for listening in. Yuri has ways to find it all out anyway.

Her friend emerges from wherever he was hiding. “I didn’t say anything,” he counters, the swagger in his voice a clear indication he does have something to add.

“Out with it.”

Yuri-bird deflects effortlessly. “What happened to Supernova?”

Hapi shrugged. “Stars die.”

He frowns, but thankfully doesn’t press it. “Shame, I was looking forward to meeting your family. You’re putting it off, aren’t you?”

She doesn’t bother to argue. “I’m hoping Coco can fix me while we travel. There has to be information somewhere on how to lift this stupid curse. And if there isn't, I get to see new places, eat some good food, and add to my pebble collection. It’s a win win.”

A pang of pain flits over his face. “What makes you so sure you’re in need of fixing, friend?”

She’d discussed this enough with Lin. At least Chatterbox convinced him to join the Blue Lions house before they had to meet on a battlefield. Hapi thinks she left him sleeping in the main hall where the victory party was being held— he could sleep through anything.

Before she can say anything else, Yuri-bird shoots her the brilliant, dangerous smile he reserves for his shadier dealings. Lavender eyes glint with secrets. Everything about him screams _'I know something you don’t know.'_

Hapi knows him well enough these days to tell if it’s genuine or a bluff. She wishes he’d narrow his left eye a fraction in an almost imperceivable tell, but of course he doesn’t.

“You know,” he begins conversationally, “that thing you’re feeling is romantic attachment?”

 _Of course_ she knows. Deep down, she always had. But she was trying this thing all the nobles did where they denied or repressed their feelings. She buried all her emotions anyway, what was one more?

“Affairs of the heart are rarely simple. If you know what you want, don’t turn your back on it because you might sigh. A wild beast attack in Fhirdiad would liven the place up a bit.” He smirks at her before continuing, “Plus, if any of them give you reason to sigh, I’ll be having words. It would be a terrible shame if something were to happen to one of those pretty nobles after disappointing you.”

“A terrible shame,” she agrees with a chuckle.

“But if you need longer to wander the realm and find your place in it…take all the time you need. These things have a habit of working out in the end anyway.”

They share a look in the cooling evening air. “Remember: heartbreak sucks, okay? But you get through it, and I’ll always be here to bring a smile to your face. But— if things go sour with Coco, leave me out of it.”

“Got it.”

“Get some rest. I’ll make the arrangements for you to leave tomorrow.”

Hapi returns to her makeshift rooms in the Imperial Palace and sleeps soundly despite the whooping from the party below.

~~~

Sylvain is long gone when she wakes in the morning. Her heart sinks lower still as Didi cups her face, rubbing his thumbs along her cheekbones while he presses the softest kiss to her forehead. It rises a little when he makes her promise to visit Fhirdiad on her culinary tour. When she sees Coco on horseback, ready to set out on their adventure together she feels so light she could soar.

 _I’m going to wander around Fódlan eating food, and hope this mess sorts itself out for me in the meantime,_ Hapi thinks. She squeezes her mount with her legs, urging it into a brisk walk. Coco’s horse dutifully follows.

“Fly free, my little birds,” Yuri shouts behind them. Hapi turns in the saddle to give him a small wave, then nudges her horse off the beaten track onto the road less travelled.

**Author's Note:**

> Did I have a complete Hapivain Cinderella AU planned out with Disney Princess Sylvain™, plotted with 1k words written? Yes  
> Did I finish it in time? No  
> Did I sneak my agenda in here anyway? Of course.
> 
> I've been converted to the Hapimitri ship too by [this](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28799382) fic, please go check it out if you haven't seen it already!
> 
> I thrive off feedback (including constructive) so please leave comments / kudos etc  
> Shout at me on twitter [here](https://twitter.com/Elasmosaurus11)


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